My #HugoAwards Final Ballot (To Be Submitted in the Future)

Over the weekend, I explained why I intended to use No Award and Blank Spacing as a response to the Sad Puppies / Rabid Puppies campaign to manipulate and take over the Hugo Awards. Since I am fundamentally opposed to slate-based voting measures, I can’t in good conscience support works which appear on this year’s ballot as a result of the SP/RP slates. And so I won’t.

Others, of course, may have different views. TheG intends to give most things on the ballot a fair shake under the guise that voting No Award would unfairly punish those that are on the ballot but are otherwise not really part of the SP/RP world. He admits, though, that this is hardly a strong response. Where we do agree, however, is that there are some problematic cases here. Some folks are on the ballot who didn’t know they were included in the SP/RP slate and would have declined if they had known. However, I’m of the mindset that support for anything on the ballot may be perceived as tacit support for the entire campaign — a point on which Abigail Nussbaum and I agree.

With that said, voting will be rather easy for me, since the SP/RP folks have taken almost every slot on this year’s ballot. Here’s what my ballot will look like when I’m allowed to submit it (feel free to lob your disagreements or what have you in the comments):Best Novel

Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

No Award

Best Novella

No Award

Best Novelette

The Day The World Turned Upside Down by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2014)

Best Short Story

No Award

Best Related Work

No Award

Best Graphic Story

Ms. Marvel Vol. 1

Saga Vol. 3

Sex Criminals Vol. 1

Rat Queens Vol. 1

No Award

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form

Interstellar

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Guardians of the Galaxy

Edge of Tomorrow

The Lego Movie

No Award

Note: I’m going to make an exception for the long/short form media categories because it’s unlikely the works listed wouldn’t have made it anyway.

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form

Game of Thrones: “The Mountain and the Viper”

Orphan Black: “By Means Which Have Never Yet Been Tried”

No Award

Note: I haven’t yet watched the others yet, so I may include them in the end. The Doctor Who piece is unlikely to make it because I’ve completely bounced off the show.

Best Editor, Short Form

No Award

Best Editor, Long Form

No Award

Best Professional Artist

Julie Dillon

No Award

Best Semiprozine

Strange Horizons

Beneath Ceaseless Skies

Lightspeed

No Award

Best Fanzine

Journey Planet

No Award

Best Fancast

Galactic Suburbia

Tea and Jeopardy

No Award

Best Fan Writer

No Award

Best Fan Artist

Ninna Aalto

Brad W. Foster

Elizabeth Leggett

Spring Schoenhuth

Steve Stiles

John W. Campbell Award (It’s a Fucking Hugo SHUT UP)

Wesley Chu

No Award

I strongly encourage you to use “No Award” if you are opposed to ballot stuffing and the blatant politicization of the Hugos, as has clearly happened this year. Leave everything off the ballot that was on the SP slate. Send a message. Gaming the Hugos will not be tolerated.